Accounting

Accounting is the language of business. All Gabelli School students need to understand the basics of accounting, both for their courses at Fordham and for their business careers. Students receive rigorous exposure to financial accounting in the integrated business core, and those who choose can continue with a program of study that prepares them to succeed on the CPA exam and obtain other highly regarded certifications.

The study of accounting does not end in the classroom. Fordham fields teams regularly for regional and national competitions in accounting and taxation. These competitions are run by major accounting firms, such as Deloitte, KPMG, PwC, and EY. Guest speakers from accounting firms, Fortune 500 corporations, and regulatory and standard-setting agencies, such as the Financial Accounting Standards Board and the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, frequently appear on campus and provide networking opportunities for students.

Accounting students may join the on-campus student chapters of several prominent professional and academic groups. Active involvement in these groups often paves the way for internships and subsequent job offers. These organizations include:

ALPFA, the Association of Latino Professionals in Finance and Accounting

Ascend, the premier nonprofit professional association for Pan-Asians

Beta Alpha Psi, the honor society for finance and accounting students and professionals

Program Requirements

Gabelli School students may integrate accounting into their academic program in several ways: As a major (through one of four options), as a minor, or as a concentration within the Business Administration major.

One of the four majors is the Public Accountancy program, which is a five-year program that leads students to complete the 150 credits that New York State requires for individuals who want to take the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) exam and earn licensure. With the other three majors, students may elect to pursue licensure, or not.

The Road To Licensure: Various Paths

By the time a student sits for the CPA exam, if licensure is his or her goal, he or she must have logged the 150 course hours mandated by New York State. Fordham has developed a variety of paths that students can pursue to reach that total.

As noted above, the five-year undergraduate Public Accountancy major is one of them. But there are other paths, too. Dual-degree programs merge a bachelor’s with a master’s degree at the Gabelli School. By the time a student completes both his or her undergraduate and graduate degree in five years, he or she will have reached the 150-hour level and be qualified to sit for the CPA exam.

The table below offers an overview of how the various licensure paths are structured. Students who wish to pursue one of these paths should apply during their senior year; please review the Dual-Degree Programs information on the Gabelli School website and contact the dual-degree programs advisor for more information.

For further information, please refer to the respective pages for each program. Students are encouraged to meet with their class dean and/or the accounting advisor for additional information regarding the programs.

How courses are counted

Students must note the following rules, implemented in fall 2013, for how courses are counted. A student may count a maximum of one class in fulfilling more than one purpose—that is, toward any combination of major, minor, and primary or secondary concentration. For example, only one economics class could count toward both a finance major and an economics minor; any additional economics class would count toward the finance major OR the economics minor, but not both. Similarly, one management class could count toward both a primary concentration in management and a minor in sustainable business, but any subsequent management class would not count toward both. Any exceptions to these rules will be posted within the specific area major, minor, or concentration requirements.

For more information

Majors

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Minor and Concentration

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ACBU 2222. PRINCIPLES OF FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING. (3 Credits)

This course covers the basic of financial accounting. Students will learn the accounting cycle and accounting terminology, and they will master the major recognition, measurement and disclosure principles that serve as the foundation for financial accounting. In addition, students are introduced to the basics of analyzing financial statements for decision making.

This course introduces students to computer-based accounting information systems (AIS). Students master the understanding of business processes, transaction cycles and internal controls, as well as their respective current day systems components.

This course is the first of a two-semester course of intensive study in accounting theory and its applications. Major topics include the conceptual frameworks, special cases of revenue recognition and the accounting standards that pertains to current and noncurrent assets.

This course is the continuation of ACBU 3434. The course contains rigorous, in-depth coverage of current and noncurrent liabilities, as well as owners' equity. In addition, the course revisits the cash flow statement for additional pertinent topics.

This course provides students with the tools necessary to understand, analyze, and use the information provided in corporate financial statements in a global environment. Students learn to analyze complex accounting issues under both domestic and international generally accepted accounting principles.

This course introduces students to the real life demands of the workplace of public accounting. One part of the course is devoted to requisite "soft skills" that students will need as they enter the workforce. Other parts of the course focus on hands-on auditing skills and audit strategy. This course also contains content relevant to the regulatory context of the audit function, including, for example, laws such as Sarbanes-Oxley.

This course focuses on the preparation of consolidated financial statements stemming from mergers and acquisitions, as well as other types of inter-corporate investments. Also covered are accounting issues pertaining to foreign exchange translations and transactions, as well accounting for derivatives. Issues pertaining to governmental accounting and to partnerships are also addressed.

This course focuses on process management and how to improve organizational processes by using a body of knowledge known as Six Sigma. A process is the unity of multiple activities that transform required inputs into desired outputs. Poorly-designed processes produce defective goods and services that lead to customer dissatisfaction and a higher level of internal and external failure cost. Therefore, continually improving process performance is critical to organizations' survival and success. Class lectures, discussions, and case studies in the course cover the methods and tools used for a Six Sigma project, such as project selection, process mapping and analysis, data collection, statistical data analysis, root-cause analysis, and creative thinking for both continual and breakthrough improvements.

ACBU 3560. ST: STUDY TOUR ITALY. (3 Credits)

This course is designed to provide students with an opportunity to combine academic study of international business and on-site corporate visits to international firms and exchange markets. International visitations provide students with the ability to observe the implementation of accounting theories into practice. Students are further enriched by lectures and assignments that are designed to hone their accounting analytical skills as well as their ability to appreciate financial reporting in a global commerce.

Modern day business is conducted in a global environment. This class addresses how the U.S. and Europe, especially Switzerland, differ in terms of how they tax transactions. The course also addresses steps taken to stop hiding of assets in overseas accounts. It also addresses working overseas along with tax and business issues with equalization the workers so they are held financially harmless by overseas assignments. Class meetings prior to departure will be comprised of lectures focused on the class model to help provide context and prepare students for their experience in Zurich.

Students define and implement controls to accurately capture and process data and to protect information assets against internal and external risks. Working in teams and under the guidance of a faculty mentor, students develop solutions rooted in rigorous analysis to client problems. At the end of the term, students will present their project findings to the client and receive client feedback. Students acquire consulting and project management skills, and network with industry professionals in accounting and information system areas.

The accounting research course will explore the changing landscape of corporate reporting. A new, standardized language is needed to articulate the material, non-financial risks and opportunities facing companies today. Both financial and non-financial risks affect a corporations’ ability to create long-term value thus reporting should include the way companies compete, use their of resources, and their impact on society. This course hones the student’s analytic tools and effective communication capability thus enabling students to become successful members of the accounting profession. Additionally, the course will heighten students’ awareness as to his/her personal responsibility and the importance of considering the needs of future generations.

This course focuses on the methods of fraud investigation, detection and prevention. Topics include financial fraud, bankruptcy, and computer forensics, as well as the corresponding professional responsibilities of the CPA.

This course provides students with a framework for understanding the critical need for ethics in professionalism in financial accounting. In addition to readings, case studies, and research, the course incorporates interactive learning techniques such as role playing.